How to survive the winter: A layering guide in association with 7mesh

It's tough out there in the UK in winter. With the mercury often hovering around zero, seemingly permanent puddles and icy winds, it’s easy to find excuses not to ride. We’ve all been there, and there’s no shame in it! But good kit does make all the difference. As mountain bike coaches and guides, we’re fortunate enough that a decent amount of our working week is spent out, well, mountain biking.

Collective experience has taught us that bringing the right clothing can be the difference between a great day and a miserable one. We’ve tried to distill all we’ve learnt into what follows, in the hopes that it might help to spread the joys of winter riding. Read on to find out what it takes to ride week in week out through a Scottish winter and how to build up a layering system that can keep you as comfortable as possible no matter how the day unfolds. 

Base Layer

A non-negotiable once the temperatures start to really dip around mid to late Autumn, a good base layer is worth its weight in gold. The job of your base layer is to provide next to skin insulation and even more importantly to wick moisture away from you so that you're not kept wet and cold; get this primary layer wrong and nothing you put on top will help, the fanciest Gore Tex jacket is useless above a cotton T-Shirt.

Within base layers, you can broadly split them into two types. Fully synthetic options (usually polyester, nylon and elastane based) wick moisture away faster and dry quicker than anything else so from a pure performance perspective they are still top of the heap. The downside is that they get do eventually get a bit stinky with age (or repeated days use) and not everyone likes the feel of synthetics against their skin. 

Our personal favourites here at TVB are garments which blend synthetic fibres with merino wool. Merino has excellent thermo-regulation properties to help you stay warm in the cold and cool in the heat, wicks moisture well, feels smooth against the skin and is anti-microbial, keeping the smell at bay. Layers built from 100% Merino can wear out a little quickly but blend it with some synthetic fibre for support and toughness and you get amazing fabrics.

We especially like the Ashlu merino base layer for its high Merino wool content material (89% Merino, 11% Nylon) and its close, articulated cut, and the Desperado (53% Polyester, 47% Merino) is a great casual looking, durable performance riding jersey. 

Midlayer / Second Layer

Keeping in the warmth generated by your body is the name of the game here. Although it might not feel like it at times, our bodies are always generating a significant amount of heat and trapping this warmth and stopping it from escaping is the M.O. of a good midlayer. 

Not all mid layers are equal however, and one key part of a good, versatile layering system is that ideally your second layer will be be able to be used in multiple ways depending on the day and weather; to do that there are a couple of key boxes it should ideally tick. First, any garment you might use as a middle layer must be super breathable, so that when you add an outer shell over the top of it, it doesn't restrict the passage of moisture out through your clothing system. 

The second is that the best and most versatile 'mid' layers should also be able to act as an outer layer when conditions are less hostile. For that, they need to have some degree of windproofing, so that they don't lose all their insulating properties as soon as there is a breeze. For riding use, the best synthetic fleeces can fill this role exceptionally well. By mimicking animal fur with a soft, fluffy internal fabric face, high pile fleece has a very large surface area for its weight, allowing it to trap a lot of warm air, thereby keeping you toasty warm. They are stretchy so stay in place when riding, dry fast and are tough. The downside to many basic fleeces however is the lack of windproofing. Big fluffy open weave fleeces are super warm under a shell jacket, but almost useless without one as they lose all their insulation in the wind.

7Mesh address both the breathability and wind proofing issues by using a proprietary fabric for their fleece garments, WTV. Standing for Wind, Thermal and Ventilation WTV fabric is lightly windproof thanks to a closely woven outer face, has a lofted pile interior and is highly breathable, making for a super versatile fabric that can serve as either outer or mid layer depending on the weather. Opt for a fleece with a level of pile to match the conditions; colder temperatures meaning more pile. Pick the lower pile WTV200 for Spring and Autumn or higher exertion activity with something like the Spruce Hoody and reach for the higher pile WTV300 for the colder temperatures with a Chilco Anorak. 

Outer shell (wind or waterproof?)

Up until this point we’ve looked at keeping warm air trapped close to the body with base and midlayers. These insulating layers are great at keeping warmth in but, in order to stop us from overheating, also have a large amount of breathability built in which can leave them open to stronger winds or rain overwhelming their defences. As soon as conditions get really hostile, then some kind of shell layer is called for to keep the elements away from your insulation and the system working well.

Many will automatically equate a shell layer with a waterproof jacket but a  light windproof punches well above its weight and works incredibly effectively in combination with a decent midlayer. Compared to a good waterproof, they are a fair bit cheaper, pack much smaller and breathe better, so they should be your go to choice any time it's cold and blowy but not pouring with rain. 

We'd recommend a light, packable windproof layer that you can take on and off as needed; it's a really flexible system combined with a base layer or fleece jacket underneath. The Northwoods Windproof jacket is lightweight, packable and stashable meaning you can carry it on your bike with integrated elastic straps. There when you need it, out of the way when you don’t. 

For wetter weather however, there is no substitute for a proper waterproof layer. A good rain jacket goes such a long way to keeping you comfortable through the worst Scotland can throw at you. If you have enough insulation underneath and you can keep it dry, you’ll stay warm. The main dilemma then comes down to cost vs performance. Even basic fabrics are waterproof when new, but they won't deal with condensation as well, or last as long as a proper 3 layer construction shell. Gore Tex are probably the best known maker of high end waterproof fabric and are still the benchmark for performance in the category.

Regardless of cost or construction, regular care and maintenance is key for all rain shells, click here to read our article on re-proofing your existing layer, but in short, if water stops beading on the surface it’s not working as it should so consider re-proofing. 

Our go to is the Guardian Apex jacket. Totally waterproof thanks to a full Gore-Tex ePE construction, it's also easy to ride in with a cut that’s fit for mountain biking. In a similar vein to the Northwoods windproof, both the Guardian Apex and Guardian Air rain jackets are packable and stashable making them ideal for the changeable conditions that are so common here.

Trousers & Socks

Winter riding in Scotland means puddles, and puddles mean wet legs. Even on a 'dry' day having trousers with a degree of water resistance, wind protection and stretch will keep the worst of the spray and wetness at bay through your ride and give you the freedom of movement to ride properly. 7Mesh’s Grit trousers strike a great balance between flexibility and weatherproof-ness (if that’s a word). They use their own AirMap fabric which is water resistant, decently windproof and very flexible. For 90% of winter riding, these are what we reach for as they provide enough protection to keep us comfortable without ever feeling restrictive.

For those ‘heavy rain all day’ days however, flexibility takes a back seat to weather protection. If it’s raining when we leave and will be raining when we get back, we’ll be riding in the Guardian Apex trousers. Made from the same Gore-Tex ePE material as the Guardian Apex jacket, these trousers keep the wind and rain off, are cut for mountain biking and will pack down into their own pocket, so can be used as over trousers as well as a primary set. 

Wet shoes are an inevitability, cold feet however need not be. Our go to choice is Merino wool blend socks for the same reasons as our base layer. Merino wool also insulates when it’s wet, so splashing those puddles becomes less daunting. The Ashlu merino socks are soft and comfy and have lasted our extensive use very well. 

Winter riding can be a magical thing, the trails are quieter and in the right conditions the views and light can be stunning. Being able to make the most of it in comfort simply comes down to wearing the right kit, and is something that can be easily overlooked. In our experience, good midlayers and waterproofs make the biggest difference and can be versatile additions to your riding wardrobe. 

So, if you need it, pick up some new winter kit, stay warm this winter, and ride your bike more.

Thanks to @innesgarahamphoto for title image (and a few others).